Chapter Seven
ISABEL
Izzy was sitting on the sofa, giggling as she nudged the popcorn bowl out of Holly’s reach. In the past couple of days, her one-year-old daughter had learned to stand up. And my oh my, that little girl was so excited. Tiny hands gripping the coffee table, she edged toward the bowl, looking as if she might fall any minute. Izzy and Aunt Cate had enjoyed popcorn for dinner. They were both still stuffed after all the holiday food, so Aunt Cate had suggested popcorn.
“Really? Popcorn for dinner?” Izzy couldn’t believe her ears.
“I do it all the time in New York. After all, corn is a vegetable.” Her aunt never failed to surprise her. They were in the kitchen at the time. Her dog Piper was playing with Holly on the floor. Aunt Cate had whisked their air popper from the cupboard, and of course another knob fell off. Izzy couldn’t wait to have this kitchen redone.
“I never thought of popcorn that way. Is butter a vegetable too?” Izzy had said. They’d laughed together.
What an easy meal to prepare. They’d eaten in front of the fireplace, although they hadn’t bothered to light a fire. That was work and Izzy was too tired after a busy day at Coffee andCupcakes. Sadly, neither one of them had bothered with a fire since Marlowe and Sam had left for home.
“Holly, stop! You stinker.” She whisked the bowl from Holly’s hands and put it at the end of the table. When her baby looked ready to cry, Izzy handed her a new teething ring. That might work for a while. She couldn’t blame her baby girl for wanting the popcorn but Izzy was afraid Holly might choke. Her teeth were just starting to come in.
Aunt Cate snapped on the news. “Do you think we’ll have more snow?”
“Maybe. I’m still looking for a snowplow service. Skipper offered to find someone.”
Remote in hand, her aunt glanced over. “He’s a big help to you, isn’t he?”
“Yes, he is.” She didn’t like to talk about her ex-husband. Izzy knew that her family had questions about her bringing Skipper on board at her bake shop. Their early marriage right out of high school had been a big mistake and had ended in divorce. Skipper had taken off for Europe and eventually came back as a pastry chef. Desperate, she’d hired him for Coffee and Cupcakes. Izzy worked hard to keep their relationship on a professional basis. She wasn’t about to make the same mistake twice.
They settled back to watch the news. Izzy had worked all day at her shop. Aunt Cate had been out for the day, and she looked as tired as Izzy felt. What was going on with her? She’d become very mysterious and seemed to be “running errands” an awful lot. And yet she never brought home any packages.
That day Aunt Cate had stopped at Izzy's coffee shop for lunch. Coffee and Cupcakes not only served pastries but also a delightful quiche as well as some basic chicken salads. Even though the shop was busy, Izzy managed to snack throughout the day. Now they were waiting for the Facetime call with Marlowe and Sam.
But she had to keep her eye on her little one while they sat there. With a look of wide-eyed determination, Holly dropped the teething ring and took another shaky step toward the bowl. Drooling, she gripped the table with both hands.
“Will you just look at that little girl?” Aunt Cate said, her eyes glowing with love. “I hope she approaches everything in life with that same purpose.”
“Well, she is my daughter, isn’t she?”
Aunt Cate didn’t say anything. Izzy appreciated Aunt Cate’s tact. She didn’t mention that Holly was adopted. Or that Izzy had basically made a mess of her life up to this point.
What a joy it was to have her aunt here with her at Sunnycrest. The large house had felt so empty after Sam and Marlowe left to go home. When their wise aunt offered to stay while they worked on the renovation plans, Izzy had been so relieved. She already had so much on her plate with the shop and Holly.
Her aunt was strategically located on the sofa with Izzy so she could see the tree and the fireplace at the same time. When the weather report ended, they turned off the news and stared at the tree. Although the holidays were past, Izzy was in no hurry to take the tree down. Her eyes swerved back to her little girl. Holly was now within reach of the popcorn.
“If she spills the bowl, we’ll have a big mess.” Jumping up, Aunt Cate swept the popcorn from the coffee table and placed the bowl on one of the shelving units framing the fireplace. Holly's little face scrunched up and she began to wail. The fun was gone. Izzy’s phone rang as she scooped a cookie monster toy from the floor. Two seconds later, Holly had it in her hands and was content again.
“This must be Marlowe.” Using one of the handy plastic phone stands, Izzy propped the phone up so that they could bothsee it. A couple taps on the phone and her sisters appeared on the screen.
The baby’s lips formed an amazed oval. “Ma-ma!” she screeched when she saw Sam smiling at her. Cookie monster was discarded and Holly reached for the phone.
Not again.Although Aunt Cate gave a startled chuckle, Izzy didn't think this was funny at all. During their holiday visit, Izzy had the hardest time getting the baby to call her Mama. After her Aunt Sam arrived for her Christmas visit, the baby attached that name to Sam more than Izzy.
“Hi, Holly.” Laughing, Sam blew a kiss to her niece.
“Ma-ma.” Squishing an open palm to her lips, Holly attempted to throw a messy kiss back to the screen.
It was stupid to feel hurt. Izzy told herself that again and again. She should be thrilled that her two sisters had come to visit for Christmas and had immediately fallen in love with her adopted daughter. Sweeping Holly into her arms, she kissed her warm, soft neck, which always brought giggles.
“Are you guys in the living room?” Marlowe asked.
“You bet.” Jumping up, Aunt Cate grabbed the phone and flipped it around in her hand so that Marlowe and Sam could see the room.
“Your tree is still up!” Sam sounded surprised and sad at the same time.
